Locals hope for normal life after riot

By Zhao Huanxin (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-08 07:44

By 11 am Tuesday, Uygur demonstrators along the street were using loudspeakers while others were yelling at police standing about 30 m away.

A young Uygur woman among the protesters fell to the ground - possibly because of hot weather - and three Uygur men and two police officers rushed her to a car to ferry her to hospital, an eyewitness said.

Yao Chengqing, 35, who lives close to the car dealerships, said he could not understand why rioters had attacked him on Sunday.

"I was about to go to bed when they broke into my shop, and without a word, they beat me with iron bars, hurting my head and breaking my arm," said Yao, who came from Anhui province.

He said he had friends from both the Han and Uygur communities.

"I couldn't figure out why this happened to me," he said, pointing to the gauze that was attached to his scalp.

For Aniwar Maimaiti, a Uygur from Aksu in southern Xinjiang, life has become difficult since July 5.

The 33-year-old salesman said he was suffering from mental trauma. He said with shops and restaurants closed, it was hard to even do simple things, such as find food.

"I don't think violence is a good way for solutions," he said. "A better way is to increase the communication of concerns and problems to the government."

Behind him in a Muslim restaurant near the Hoi Tak Hotel on Dongfeng Road in downtown Urumqi, a notice daubed on the wall read: "Do not engage in fighting or scuffling, or it may bring you 10 days in detention, 500 yuan in fines, 1,000 yuan for medicare, and cause worries for your family, your own bleeding, plus adding to personal enemies and increasing your regrets."

On Monday evening, a day after Sunday's riot, traffic along the normally thronging highway from Urumqi airport to the downtown had slowed to a trickle.

A driver, surnamed Zhou, said a journey that usually took him more than an hour passed by in just 30 minutes on Monday evening.

Anti-riot police armed with tear-gas, rifles, batons and shields continued to patrol the streets into the evening, with armored vehicles rolling by.

However, not everyone was tense in the city. A traveler from Taiwan, surnamed Zhou, said she remained relaxed during her holiday in Xinjiang.

Zhou, who arrived with a group of tourists on Monday night, left the Hoi Tak Hotel early Tuesday morning.

"There are people who protect us, and we know to keep away from dangerous zones; so we can continue our trip worry-free," the Kaosiung resident said.

Ng Yu-chiu, a tourist guide with a Hong Kong travel agency, said his group had altered its itinerary. Instead of going to bazaars to shop, they visited Hongshan Park in Urumqi.

Yuan Xiaohong, another tour guide with the group, said tourists had been warned not to venture out at night. She said no one showed signs of concern during their four-day visit in Xinjiang.

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